jwarcop

chem geek, Thanks for the response. Not only that link but I've found others including from the owners manual about removing the Eco-Pur if you plan on using Bromine. Maybe some sort of silver reaction to bromine? I definately doesn't look like a normal filter. I was using plain unscented bleech from Wal-mart. For a couple months I tried Dichlor then bleech but it just smelled slightly different to me in the spa. Could be just a mental thing but to me it was a different experience. Adding something after a soak isn't an issue, it seems that our issue is just remembering to add something if we skip 2 days of use. I would imagine I would continue to add MPS after the soak to continue to handle the oxidation. Ozonator not working - didn't really think of that. For sure if I let the chlorine drop to zero and go for 24 hours, it turns cloudy. I can get things back fine just dosing with Dichlor/MPS and it clears right back up. I only had an issue with Biofilm once and that is easily detectable. I've run across that with the fresh/salt water aquariums I've maintened over the years. Got me thinking on a couple of things to check.

Greetings - I've got a 510 gallon spa that we enjoy very much and this year will be 1 year with it. I maintain an Eco Pur filter and it runs an Ozone generator. The chlorine levels are difficult to maintain. I can put the tub at 5ppm FC, leave the spa unattended for 2 days and it drops to zero and turns cloudy. While I like keeping nice things the near daily maintenance of dosing has become old. I have a big sensitivity to bleech but not dichlor. So the constant use of dichlor just rockets the CYA quickly. So here I'd like to consider switching over to bromine. However it is indicated that an Eco Pur filter is NOT recommended for use with bromine. Does anyone know why - like the actual reasons other than the baseless claim. I enjoy using the spa when maintained with dichlor and MPS shocking but its just to much maintenance. I'm fairly convinced this has to do with the ozone generator essentially 'eating' the chlorine. I've read other thread where this may be the case. I'm just now curious if I must remove the Eco-Pur filter before trying bromine and a tab floater. I just don't get the science as to why it would cause a problem.

I've had a similar pool and spa store try and get me to move to 'EZ Spa'. He kind of gave the method away when he said I would shock using Dichlor. So that essentially means its using MPS very regularly and the Dichlor for shock. I've heard of doing it this way but have not tried nor would I be able to.

I hate car salesmen - but I still buy cars and have to deal with their rediculous methods. The pool and spa industry isn't any better than the dozens of little car dealerships with an inventory of 15 cars.

Another thing - I would recommend an initial fill and drain. it came fairly dirty from the factory and the manufacturing oils were still present. Fill/shock+flush/drain.. and then do a start-up. That will help cut out the initial pain of trying to balance out the water.

I think my experience thus far matches your precisely, except I haven't even received a tub yet. I have 20+ years of computer and networking experience, and I too discussed the option of "doing it myself" if need be. They seemed to be ok with that as is in your case, but I wont know for real until we come to that pass. As far as your winters go vs. mine, I am still a bit worried, but to be honest, I'd be worried no matter what the brand, Hey, water freezes lol. I will report my experience. Im very skeptical the delivery will go smoothly, but it can, they can drive that 52' truck right up in the yard... I wonder if they'll be able to drive it back out. Thank you for your description. 1 year into it and its fading and warping, and you are not in the coldest up north area as I am. Perhaps this will work out to be a good starter tub. Stay tuned. The model has freeze protection. At any time if the water temp is detected below 44F the pumps/heater will activate to bring to 45F. Hopefully you do not lose power during an ice storm for an extended period of time. On the fading - it's only the interior vinyl pillows. I think my wife at times has been too overzealous with the sanitizer and I think that is showing. The exterior skirting and shell are still like new from the factory. The warping is only a single diverter value and everything else is fine. I'm not too worried at the moment since the valve is designed to be "overturned" without breaking. My kids have leaned on it turning it thinking it does more and nothing has happend "yet".

Understandably warranty is only great up to a certain point and in fact you said the customer is out of warranty. Without going through an explaination of planned obsolescense - doesn't it makes sense that a manufacuturer can choose to or decide not to maintain service for a products entire lifetime? Master Spa told you to go pound sand because the warranty ended. Without going into a big debate about warranties that type of reaction is to be expected. They offered the warranty, it expired, and you get no more free parts. File a complaint with the company because the warranty expired and you want free parts still? Unless I'm missing something here... Just like buying parts for my car at this point in its life. The warranty is expired and I'm not about to walk back into the dealership and buy OEM. The Internet has reliable sources for obtaining equipment that can match and/or beat these components inside. I've bought water pumps from plumbing supply stores for sprinkler systems and online from aquarium supply shops for 1000+ gallon salt water reefs. I'm pretty sure I can find one to replace the low flow recirc pump inside my hot tub when the warranty expires. I don't think 1 experience of an "expired warranty" should mean that people should avoid the brand completely. I'm not an advocate for "customer-no-service" but don't expect more than what they've already provided. That is pie on your face, not theirs. If you don't like that a warranty expires, find another brand that maintains/services their product for life.

Additional thoughts - Warranty - I built up a slight rapport when talking with those guys and never made anything a real big deal. They said I could call up and if I was comfortable with the repair they could simply ship me the parts. It would be cost prohibitive for me to expect them to drive WAY out here or in fact take airfare to do certain repairs. Mind you - I've worked on computer and networking equipment for many years so dropping out the control box and putting in a new one is quite simple "TO ME". The heater and pumps are very easily accessible with quicklock fittings. Water pumps should last a considerable amount of time. I have a feeling the pump may be oversized and the plumbing may be exerting too much head pressure therefore producing strong jets but putting uncessary wear on the pump. I did get a small shell chip from delivery. Since it was on the TOP of the tub (it comes on its side) it was not found until it was dropped. The installer did mention he could get me a repair kit - but that didn't happen either. All in all I understand this isn't the best industry to work with - we all have heard the horror stories in the pool and spa industry and its quite shamful. A good solid company could step forward IMO and wipe the floor with some of these guys. I have to seperate the "dealer" from Master Spas though and I have found someone about an hour away I "could" work with on service but would have to pay a premium to get them here. Like I said earlier - the dealer sales guy and the installer guy that came down were OK in customer service and a little to fast to hit the paperwork, grab the check, and call it a day IMO.

Hi! I have a Master Spa 8.25, bought from a dealer doing a state fair (from way up north), here in the middle of Georgia. Everyone has their own reasons and or situations so let me explain mine. I'll get to my personal experience with the product here in a few moments - I very much like the product. #1 There are zero local dealers for any brand of spa or pool to help assist locally. This meant I chose whatever brand I liked when it comes to features. Since service wouldn't matter regardless of brand I went with this tub. Dealing with these "customer-no-service" types of oranizations it can take some social engineering at times to get help with certain things. I had to take this into consideration when making a purchase like this. #2 Beware of the "promises" from the dealer at the fair - they make a lot of them. I fully understood they were in sales mode and churning through EVERY promise was not going to be a easy trip. For example- I was told I'd recieve extra filters with the purchase and that never happened. The tub arrived on a 52' truck without a lift-gate. The installer that came down said he specifically requested a lift-gate so we had to do some creative engineering to get it out of the big truck, on to our smaller truck, drive it around back and drop it to the ground. 2" PVC makes great work to move this thing around into position and the two of us "dropped" it into place. I didn't necesairly like 100% the sales process and the order delivery/installation - but dang I've really enjoyed the product. The product - Real strong jets - pretty much everyone I've had in the tub has to dial it back a little. With the equipment that is inside the tub it makes it a more "personable" experiece. Showing individuals they can make it as comfortable as they like has been awesome. The tub has a Sleep, Economy, and Standard mode - with energy rates they are here in Georgia I left it in Standard mode through Winter. Obviously it has considerable draw on the power bill and you need to take that into consideration. In the Sleep and Economy modes I have not that the re-circ pump WILL stop. I've found the insulation to be adequate and even below freezing temperatures I could always get in at whatever temp I wanted. We obvisouly do not have that hard of a winter down here but it gets cold (to us). I deal a lot with aquariums so the bulkheads, plumbing and pump connections are solid. I see nothing out of the ordinary here. The pumps push water around and if anything ever happens to the pumbing I can fix it. The insulation does cover a fair amount of the plumbing so if you go digging around in it you have to replace it. it's a spray in foam type insulation you would find inside commercial freezer walls. Cons: The filters (but this really isn't a "tub" issue). I'm currently searching for quality replacement filters. The way they work in the 8.25 and the filters I have they seem to "seperate" the top from the plastic running inside the pleats. This means BE CAREFULL overtightning the filters. Even after a short period of time you'll go to remove the filter, the "top" plastic will break from the inside plastic and then you're stuck. The diverter from chair 1/2 to the feet seems to be warping a bit. it is still functional but it seems like it could break off within the next year. The diverter valves can be loud for example if you want 50/50 distribution from chair1/2 to the feet it can make a considerable amount of air noise. This isn't an issue when the tub contains more people as it covers over this valve. I'm already getting some fading on the pillows and drink holder above the filter box. Not a big deal but only after 1 year with a covered tub I was expecting maybe a little more. Maintenance has been very easy. I'm paranoid about water quality and change it each month. Drop the side panel off, drain it, swap filters (I did buy an extra set), refill and put in "my start-up" batch of chemicals. I run the tub year round even in our 100 degree heat because the water will always stay cooler than air and it makes a nice relaxing cool-tub when needed. So far I've been and my family has been VERY pleased with the product. It is a 100% luxury item here in the south so this thing blows out any local hot-tub competition. ---And I like having the best on the block--. :-) Feel free to PM me more if I've missed something or you have more specific questions. This month I'll have the product for a year and can go snap pictures if you like. cheers